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Bicycles in Belltown

Last Thursday evening we attended the first anniversary of Sustainable Belltown at the Olympus Apartments hosted by Elizabeth Campbell the founder of Sustainable Belltown.
Our speakers for the evening were from the Cascade Bicycle Club. They asked our audience several questions about biking in Belltown rather than giving a set speech. Not lacking for input as our members are all very vociferous in their participation and from all over the world we spoke and they took notes for more than an hour. They also answered many questions about how they could help with some concerns we have about bicycling in Belltown and surrounding areas. More than fifty percent of our attendees rode bicycles to work or for enjoyment on a regular basis.

Information about the Cascade Bicycle Club may be found at the following address:

An excerpt reads; It was the Irish writer Flann O’Brien who put forth the theory that if you ride a bicycle long enough it takes on your nature and you take on a bit of its. That’s why you see bicycles hanging out in your pubs and people leaning stolidly against walls. It goes without saying that there never was a more lyrical invention — a machine so attuned to the nature of dreaming.

This site is about the challenges of riding in New York City and some of the emotions felt while doing so.

In Europe nearly all major cities have a bicycle riding system which is 50 years ahead of most all cities in the United States. University towns in the West are among the most bicycles friendly in the nation.

How do we get to the level of the European cities bicycle systems? In fact how do we move ahead in the dilapidated infrastructure system in the United States?

“The standard answer is that we need better leaders. The real answer is that we need better citizens. We need citizens who will convey to their leaders that they are ready to sacrifice, even pay, yes, higher taxes, and will not punish politicians who ask them to do the hard things. Otherwise, folks, we’re in trouble. A great power that can only produce suboptimal responses to its biggest challenges will, in time, fade from being a great power — no matter how much imagination it generates” (Friedman, The New York Times, November 21, 2009).

Note: This is a seattlepi.com reader blog. It is not written or edited by the P-I. The authors are solely responsible for content. E-mail us at newmedia@seattlepi.com if you consider a post inappropriate..